The project was conceived as a patriotic manifestation commemorating the 100th anniversary of the victorious Battle of Racławice, a famous episode of the Kościuszko Insurrection, a heroic but in the end fallen attempt to defend Polish independence. The battle was fought on April 4, 1794 between the insurrectionist force of regulars and peasant volunteers (bearing homemade scythes) under Kościuszko (1746 – 1817) himself and the Russian army commanded by General Alexander Tormasov. For the nation which had lost its independence, the memory of this glorious victory was particularly important.

The National Exhibition, organized in Lwów in 1894, offered an excellent opportunity to realize Styka’s idea. Canvas, woven to order, was bought in Brussels, the specially built rotunda’s iron structure (designed by Ludwik Ramułt) in Vienna. The rotunda, located in Stryjski Park in Lwów, was ready in July 1893. The huge panorama painting was executed within 9 months, between August 1893 and May 1894. The official opening was on June 5, 1894. Since the very beginning, Panorama of the Battle of Racławice attracted enormous attention and brought crowds of tourists to Lwów. On average 75 000 viewers visited it every year.[